125th Street, An Update
Posted: February 11th, 2026 | Filed under: ManhattanHonestly, 20 years just sneaks up on you but one of the satisfying things about this admittedly somewhat insane project is catching change over time. Walking the length of 125th Street in Manhattan in 2004 was just to see what was there, while walking the length of it on January 23, 2026 made you aware of how much of the street has evolved, so I paid more attention to the new things than I usually would have:
The former site of Demolition Depot (which is now on 126th Street I believe) . . .
. . . is now this:
And the southwestern corner of 125th Street and Lexington Avenue in 2004 . . .
. . . in May 2020 (those images are here . . .
. . . and today:
The “Corn Exchange” building at the northwest corner of 125th Street and Park Avenue pre- and post-renovation:
The northeast corner of 125th Street and Madison Avenue:
The Studio Museum, first “of” now “in”:
“Movie Center 5” was long closed by the time we walked by in 2004, but it was once a huge Loew’s theater and is now part of a huge mixed-use project:
And the Apollo, behind scaffolding then and now:
Nelson Cleaners, same:
The pre- and post-eminent domain Manhattanville deserves its own page, here, but some side-by-sides follow:
